A Pole to Grind on
by JT.Merc
Summary: In her most desperate time, Serenity Wheeler turned to strip dancing as a way to make money after learning that she had a brain tumor. Humiliated, she encountered Seto Kaiba at the strip joint. The two began a journey down an unexpected path.
1. Chapter 1

A POLE TO GRIND ON

CHAPTER 1

The crowd began to cheer as Serenity Wheeler walked on stage naked but a black thong; gripping the pole in one hand, as tense as she was, she began to perform an exotic dance. It had been her first time dancing on stage, and it was nerve racking for her. She spent a whole month giving lap dances to the gentlemen at the strip club, they loved her lap dances. However, customers began to desire a new stage dancer so the club owner had requested Serenity to perform.

It was an unusual case that Serenity had turned to stripping for money. Everyone had always known her to be an innocent beauty. She spent most of her time in college, studying hard, and was a cashier at her local retail mall. Things were going fantastic for her, she was making enough to support herself and was able to rent a little cute studio apartment. Her college was paid for by a scholarship she was granted. However, her little spirit shattered when she discovered that she had a tumor in her head one day from a CAT scan the doctor performed on her. He advised her that she needed to undergo surgery or else she would be facing death.

That day, Serenity came come and cried herself to sleep wondering why she must face one medical problem after another. She had recovered from eye surgery, thanks to the help of her brother Joey, and now was facing a brain tumor. Luck was not kind to her. She closed her eyes briefly, thinking about her brother and what he had gone through to help raise the money for her eye surgery. Not wanting to trouble him, even though she knew that he wouldn't mind helping her once more, she kept the tumor a secret and took extra shifts at her retail store.

Serenity worked for hours folding and stocking clothes at the clothing boutique. Her endless hours of working left her tired and the stress from thinking about her tumor made her nights restless. She had a hard time focusing on school and her grades began to fall behind causing her to loose her scholarship.

"I am strong." she reminded herself, "I will get through this."

Unfortunately, Serenity got laid off one day from work and was falling behind on rent. She applied everywhere, retails, fast foods, banks; only to get a sympathetic letter of rejection each time. The economy was certainly suffering. Out of her most desperate moment, she turned to one of the most frowned upon occupation, stripping.

She viewed her bank account and found that she had about a hundred dollar left. She invested that small amount of money she had into a couple of pole and lap dancing lessons. After a couple of lessons she auditioned in a strip club and they granted her employment.

Within a month she made enough to catch up on rent and was very close to reaching the amount of money she needed for her surgery. Gentlemen there adored her and her innocent looks worked to her advantage. One of them tried paying her to have sex with him but she did not hesitate to refuse. Prostitution was where she drew the line. There was no way in hell she was going to let herself sink to that level, being a stripper was humiliating enough.

As she performed an exotic dance on the pole, her breasts bounced up and down gracefully; gentlemen began to wave dollar bills in the air waiting for her to fetch it. There were no pride left in her now as she began to lean closer to them, allowing them to stuff the side of her thong with dollar bills. Not a proud moment for her, but she was determined to save enough money for her surgery. The music finally ended and she was anxious to get away. She staggered off the stage as fast as her stripper heels can carry her. She can hear the audience cheering and clapping from behind as she headed for the make up room.

"You did excellent! Oh, my gosh! I can't believe that was your first time on stage. I couldn't tell." exclaimed Cherry, another stripper who was a young slender blonde girl. Cherry had been very kind to Serenity; the rest of the strippers at the gentlemen's club had been bitches. Serenity never bothered to ask Cherry what her real name was, she only knew her by her stripper name.

It took Serenity a while to come up with a stripper name herself, but Cherry suggested that she be called Blossom and together they would be Cherry Blossom. Serenity agreed and everyone at the strip club knew her by that name.

Gossips began to spread throughout the make up room that a wealthy man was going to pay the club a visit. He came once a month and tipped the girls there with hundred dollar bills rather than a one dollar bills. Girls began to scatter around the make up area attempting to look even more beautiful; reapply lipsticks and foundation to freshen up their looks.

"Why does he have to come the day my tanning salon screws up on my spray on tan?" complained a brunette stripper dressed in a red set of bra and panties. She was trying desperately to powder down her orange tan, fogging up the area around her.

"Take it easy!" cried another as she coughed and fanned away the powder in the air.

Serenity was anxious to meet this gentlemen, if he was as generous as they portrayed him to be then she might get lucky and score big. She might even make enough for her surgery and never have to look back. She joined the girls at the make up table and began to doll up as well.

Later, Cherry ran in the make up room, excited, and announced that the generous man had arrived. "He's here! He's here!" she shouted, ecstatic.

The girls threw themselves out the door in a frenzy to welcome him. Serenity stayed behind re-brushing her hair and questioned herself if she had looked good enough.

"I'm beautiful." she said to herself. "I'm a young confident woman."

Still topless, she began to make her way out of the make up room and into the club where music played vividly. "Where's the wealthy man?" she asked Cherry.

"In the VIP room." she answered. "Only a few girls are selected to join him."

"Blossom!" yelled the club owner suddenly. He was an old hefty man dressed in a gray suit. He gestured her to come over.

"Yes?" Serenity asked once she reached him.

"That guy in the VIP room is a big spender. One of my most precious customer." he began as he let out a ring of smoke from his cigar. "I want you to join him tonight. You're a fresh face and gentlemen hear adores you. I think you are what he needs tonight."

Serenity heart began to race, she had been selected to join the wealthy man in the VIP room. She nodded and nervously made her way to the VIP area. She reached for the door knob and twisted it slowly, trying to calm her nerves down. As she opened the door a walked in she saw a familiar face. He sat comfortably on the couch and gazed at her with his blue eyes.

She gasped and blood rushed to her face when she realized that those were Seto Kaiba's blue eyes staring back at hers.

_AUTHOR NOTE: Thank you readers for taking the time to read my work. I really hoped you guys enjoyed. Let me know what you think. I take criticism, but please be polite. Thanks again!_


	2. Chapter 2

A POLE TO GRIND ON

CHAPTER 2

Serenity stood stiffed and felt the urge to run out the door, but she was paralyzed from shock. A tap on the shoulder awoken her body, snapping her frozen mind back to reality, "Move over!" demanded a female voice. She didn't pay attention to who had said it, her eyes were still gazing at Seto, who was slouching uneasily on the couch now. Abruptly, Serenity covered her breast with one arm. Embarrassed, she quickly went out of the room. She walked aimlessly across the club to take haven in the make up room.

"Blossom?" she heard her boss calling out to her over the loud music, but ignored it till she felt his hand on her bare shoulder.

She turned to look at him, her eyes meeting his dark brown ones. "Yes?"

"You're suppose to be in there!" he said pointing to the VIP area.

"I know the man that is in there."

"Everyone knows the man in there. It's Seto Kaiba. He comes here discretely entering from the back to avoid the press." he stated.

"I can't go back in there." she pleaded.

"No. You need to get back in there." he insisted, "I need a new face in there."

"I can't!" she refused and took a large step back, nearly tripping in her 9-inch heels. She continued to the make-up room and slammed the door behind her. Three other girls looked up and their gaze followed Serenity till she took a seat in front of a mirror trying to gather herself together. Suddenly, the door flung open and in walked her boss.

"Hey!" shouted a redhead girl with porcelain skin as she quickly threw on a pink satin robe, "You're not allowed in here!"

"Oh, please, Diamond! It's not like I've never seen any one of you naked before. What the hell am I violating, sexual harassment? It's a goddamn strip club!" Then his eyes fell upon the stripper with the horrible spray on tan, she was back in the room still trying to fix it. "What the hell happened to you, Candy? You look like an anorexic orange or a tangerine!" he stated.

"It's not looking any better?" she asked adding even more powder.

"Stop it!" he demanded, "you're making yourself look blotchy now!" then walked pass her till he reached Serenity, "Blossom, you're going to be in that VIP room asap. I'm giving you five more minutes." he warned. Before he left the room he turned facing Serenity to deliver a threat, "Or I will not hesitate to fire you!" An ocean of stress consumed Serenity, now she knew that she was left with no choice but to face Kaiba. "Five minutes!" she heard him shout again.

There were many gorgeous ladies at the club, different reasons united them there. But they were all there to do the same thing and that was to make money. Some girls vowed to themselves that they were only going to work there temporary; saving enough money to pay for college was a common reason. However, a lot grew comfortable with the money and winded up working there for years. Many even dropped out of college. Serenity prayed that she would be different. There was no way she was going to let herself dwell in such a sinful occupation for so long. Her goal was to save just enough money and that decision was firm.

She never had to worry about bumping into her brother since she knew for a fact that he was not the type of man who would objectify women. He treated woman with respect. The thought of having to be topless in front of Kaiba overwhelmed her. The feeling was awkward.

Unfortunately, it had to be done or else her damn boss would fire her. Being fired from a strip club would be even more embarrassing. She would fall behind on rent once again and never save enough money for her surgery. Serenity massaged her head for a little bit, the headache seemed to worsen every passing day. She has no clue of how much time she had, but she knew that she had to do whatever it takes and she had to do it fast.

Gathering back her strength and sanity, she made her way back into the VIP area once more. After pushing the door open, she saw Sapphire, a young sexy brunette stripper. She wore a cheeky blue panty and was grinding on Kaiba's lap. Facing him, she dug his face into her naked large breasts and he awarded her with a couple of hundred dollar bills. His attention focused on Serenity, a dark smirk fell upon his face.

What could he be smirking about? She wondered.

A blonde topless girl with long wavy hair walked over and filled his cup with more alcohol. She had perfect skin, but looked plastic all around, with fake breast implants, lip injections, and a possible butt lift. She looked almost like a Barbie, and not in a good way.

They figured the drunker he got the more generous he becomes.

"Remy Martin, VSOP. The finest cognac here." she winked as she poured.

"Tell your boss I told him to stop being so cheap and upgrade to Remy Martin Black Pearl." he said.

"That's $55,000 a bottle!" the blonde exclaimed.

"That's lunch money to me." he boosted as he shot her a grin.

It was clear that he had not been drinking a lot, alcohol had not possessed him yet and he was nowhere near being drunk. Perhaps a few more drinks would do the trick.

The VIP room was set at a good temperature; not too cold and not too hot. But goosebumps took over Serenity's body and chills ran down her spine.

"I want you to give me a lap dance." he shamelessly ordered as he pointed at Serenity.

Embarrassed, Serenity obeyed and walked over to him. He pulled her down to sit on his lap, "Serenity Wheeler." he whispered against her ears. She felt blood rushing to her face again.

"Show me what you got!" he screamed and all the strippers in the room began to cheer, egging Serenity on. Some of them had been drinking as well. "Yeah! Blossom!" she heard them shout.

A new track of music began and the lighting in the room started to dim. The music had a slow beat to it, a very seductive tune.

Serenity began to work her magic. Placing both of her hands on each of his thighs, she leaned closer till her breasts were just inches away from his face.

A small smile began to appear on him. He didn't know how she ended up at a strip joint and was taken aback by it. He started to take pleasure in wondering how Joey would react once he found out about this because Kaiba doubted that Joey was aware of all this.

Serenity spun around to give him a good view of her ass as she bounced her small booty up and down. Finally, Kaiba had lost it and burst out with laughter. It made him feel fantastic to be able to objectify a Wheeler. He never fancied them and found Joey to be highly annoying. Now he was here treating Joey's sister like a doormat and loving every second of it.

She ignored his laughter and continued on grinding on him. At the moment, he didn't find the lap dance to be erotic, he found it to be hilarious because it was coming from a Wheeler. Instead of tipping her with hundred dollar bills like he did for the other strippers, Kaiba stuff the side of Serenity's thong with one dollar bills and enjoyed the look of disappointment on her face

Suddenly, she turned around and faced him, her hands placed gently on his thighs. Her eyes met his and he gazed into her innocent eyes. His smile vanished. Even tho the music was still playing and drunk girls were cheering, Kaiba's world became silent. Everything was quiet and the people around him became a blur. It was just him and Serenity.

Lust dominated him as she sat on his lap facing him, with one legs on each of his side. He heard and felt her breath on his neck.

As she moved her hips back and forth, practically dry humping him, she felt a bulge in his pants and it grew larger each time she moved back and forth.

Beads of sweat began to form on Kaiba's forehead. Now he was developing an urge to take her away from here. Away from this hell hole.

Serenity stood up and was finish with her lap dance. She left the room in a hurry.

"Wait!" she heard him shout for her. "Wait!" he shouted again. "Stop!"

Girls began to throw themselves at Kaiba. There was a crowd of strippers in front of him which made it difficult for him to run after her. She disappeared and left Kaiba behind with a group of money hungry strippers.

Author Note: Thank you for the reviews! I hope you like this chapters.


	3. Chapter 3

A Pole to Grind on

CHAPTER 3

They clung on to him like vampires thirsty for blood except it was his money that they craved. He yanked his arm away from one of the girls and waved down a security in the room. The tall hulk like man rushed over, signaling the ladies to calm down.

"Bring your boss in here and shoo these girls out. I need to talk to him." Kaiba hissed.

The security nodded and motioned the girls out of the room. They groaned in disappointment, wondering why the party was over all of a sudden.

Kaiba slumped back down on the couch waiting for the club owner to walk in. He kept replaying the lap dance Serenity had performed for him over and over again in his brain like a broken record. Could it be true? He asked himself.

He couldn't help but to feel a concern for her all of a sudden, he closed his eyes briefly, remembering her innocent eyes staring back at his. She had this distinctive look in her eyes that created havoc in the pit of his stomach; evidence of trouble and help lingered in it. Life and joy had deteriorated from her.

But why the concern for her all of a sudden? He wondered. Why the change of heart from feeling the pleasure of objectifying her to feeling guilty. At that point, he was not sure, the questions floating around in his head continued on unanswered.

Kaiba reached over to a small table next to his couch and wrapped his hand around the drink that the blonde had poured for him earlier. He gave it a sip but spat it back out. Wiping his mouth with his sleeve, he made a disgusted face. "Remy Martin VSOP my ass." he muttered. Something didn't taste right about that cognac, or maybe he just wasn't in a drinking mood tonight.

"Kaiba, what is it that we need to discuss?"

His cold blue eyes rose to the club owner and he signaled the hefty man to take a seat. "Amauto, how long has Serenity been working at your club?" he asked.

"Serenity...," he trailed off trying to recall who that was. Amauto usually addressed the girls here by their stripper names so their real names had faded from his old memory. Kaiba took note that the man was having trouble figuring out who he was talking about and decided to give him a minor description of Serenity.

"Blossom?" he watched as Kaiba nodded. "Um, almost a month now."

"Did she tell you why she wanted to work here?"

"Hell should I know? She may have, but I don't remember. I'm running a club with over a hundred strippers, you gotta remember that." he replied.

It was true, the club was always jammed with strippers swarming around like honey bees in their hive.

Kaiba frowned noting that the owner was not helpful. "Bring her to me." he commanded.

Amauto pulled back his sleeve, revealing a gold exquisite watch and gave it a glance. "Sorry, it's 3AM, she went home."

"Why?"

"What do you mean why? This is a strip club not a brothel. They come here, do their business, and when their shift ends they leave."

"Where does she live?"

"Why are you asking me where she lives?" he asked, wondering why Kaiba was interrogating him."I like you, you're one of my most treasured costumer. But, I can't have you stalking my girls."

"I'm not trying to stalk her!" he bellowed, his ego aching from the comment. Nobody called him a stalker. "I believe she is in trouble. Which is why she's here. I think she needs help." he proceeded, his voice softer this time. But still, Kaiba could not comprehend why he had developed a sympathy for her, something in his mind told him to reach out. His hand formed a fist in vexation on the armrest of the couch.

Amauto scoffed at Kaiba's concerns, "You're out of character today. Please don't tell me you're falling in love with a stripper! I get one too many customers walking in here playing hero, trying to rescue girls from this corrupted business. It's a cliché. Besides, I'm not allowed to give out addresses, it's against club policy. I can get my ass sued if I did, I'd be violating the laws of privacy. You wouldn't like it if I announced to the press that you were here because you want your privacy and I respect that. I do for these girls too."

"Alright." Kaiba agreed. He had a point. "But can you at least tell me when she'll be back?"

"Tomorrow. 8pm."

"Great." Kaiba calmly stated as he stood up, "I'm done here for now." He made his way out the back door of the VIP room that led outside. "Oh." he turned around to face Amauto who was walking him out, "Stop being a cheap bastard and use authentic Remy Martin."

Amauto crocked his head slightly, not following him."What the hell are you talking about?" he asked defensively.

"You're reusing the Remy Martin VSOP bottle and pouring cheap shit in there."

"I do no such thing!" he shouted.

"You really think I don't know."

"Don't accuse me of such a thing! If you're not satisfied, go to that ghetto strip club down the street. The girls there are hideous. UGLY, I tell ya! And the club reeks like something had died there for months. Health inspectors should go down there to figure out what that stench is! The next closest club is fifty miles away from here and that one is under my management as well."

Indeed, Amauto had a lot of faith in his strip club and took pride in it being one of the best. He was sure Kaiba would never be foolish enough to leave his club for the beat up one down the street.

Kaiba stared at Amauto with annoyance blazing in him. Oh, how he wanted to punch the cockiness right out of that bastard. But he just rolled his eyes and continued on out, entering the black limo that had been waiting for him all night.

/

Serenity got into her car, letting her pedal know that she was in a rush to get to her apartment, she was dying to get away from the club. The car she drove was not a luxury one, it was one that her brother had saved up to buy for her so that she didn't have to take the bus to school or work. It was a small blue sedan with tinted window. The paint on the roof of the car was beginning to peel, definitely not a new car, but it was a gift from her brother's heart.

She did her best to fight back the tears that were battling their way out of her brown eyes. Kaiba had humiliated her and she found that hard to shrug off. How dare her cheapen her, tipping her with one dollar bills only to watch the disappointment look on her face. She walked out of the VIP room with only five dollars while the others made almost a grand! He was nothing but a bully with money. Serenity became furious and her pride would not allow her to go home with his damn dollars. In fact, before she got to her car, she donated all of it to a homeless man on the street.

"I am strong." she whispered to herself and other words of encouragement as well.

Perhaps she should confess to her brother and ask for his help, she thought. She had enough of being degraded.

Serenity opened the door to her cozy studio apartment and staggered in, it had been a long and exhausting day for her. Serenity threw her pink little purse on her study desk and walked over to her bed to sleep.

A knock on her door woke her up, she let out a weary groan and glanced at her clock noticing that it was 9am. Joey always stopped by on Saturday around that time. She dragged herself out of bed to greet him.

"Joey!" she gave him a hug and invited him in.

"Serenity, last night I went to that little clothing boutique to find you. I asked the manager where you were, but they said that you got laid of like a month ago."

"Right, I did." she confessed. "But, no worries! I got a new job now."

Joey took a seat in her little dining table. "Where at?"

"Um..Just at this little coffee shop near Domino University." she lied. "I wouldn't go there, their coffee aren't really that great." she forced a smile on her face, but inside she was aching with guilt from having to lie to him. Should she tell him what had been going on? She wondered.

"Serenity," he began, "I truly admire you. You're smart and hard working. I want to make something out of myself. I want to go to college!"

Serenity was smiling genuinely now, "Really?"

"Yeah. I've been working at this little fast food place and I've been saving half of my checks to pay for my college! Isn't that great, sis?"

"Yes, Joey, that's awesome!"

"Plus, there's this dueling competition that gives you scholarships. Imma try it out! But that ain't till next year. I saved enough to start as soon as next semester!"

"Joey, that's fantastic!"

Now she really didn't want to ask her brother for help, he had spent a great amount of hours to save up for college and was excited about it. There was no way she was going to put Joey in that position. No way!

She pulled out two bowls of cereal and poured them each some milk. Saturday was her favorite day, no matter how busy she was she always set a day aside to see Joey. The two enjoyed their breakfast and a conversation about a horror film that they saw last week.

"Do you want to join me and my friends for another movie night?" he asked.

Serenity shook her head. She wish she could, but she had to work tonight at 8pm and hope that she would not have to encounter Kaiba there again.

Authors note: reviews are loved. Please leave some. Hope you enjoy. Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

A POLE TO GRIND ON

CHAPTER 4

Kaiba sat at his dinner table gazing at his watch anxiously, waiting for 8pm to come.

"Seto, you haven't touched your steak yet."

He looked down at his plate and realized that Mokuba was right, he hadn't even taken a bite of his dinner. "What's wrong." he heard his brother say. "Nothing," he replied, "I just have to make sure I leave our house at eight."

"Why?"

He looked up at the young boy who was enjoying the dinner, savoring every bite of it. "I have some place I must go to."

"Where?" he asked.

Kaiba hesitated for a while before answering, "To a godforsaken place." he said finally.

Mokuba stopped eating and looked up at his older brother from across the table, "Godforsaken place?"

"Yes. And we shall leave it at that." he said. It wasn't like him to leave Mokuba in the dark, he always filled Mokuba in on everything, but this was different. Very different.

The clock finally read eight and Kaiba rose from his dinner table promptly. "I must go now." he said throwing down a handkerchief on the table next to his untouched meal. "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

"Wait! You're still taking me to see that movie right?" he said, hoping that Kaiba had not forgotten.

"Of course, I always keep my promises to you," he assured as he made his way out to one of his employee who was waiting for him outside of the house.

The man greeted Kaiba with a trench coat and a fedora hat in one hand, he handed Kaiba those following items and a key as well, "It's that car over there." he indicated, pointing to a red car.

Kaiba saw the car and nodded in approval. He threw on the black trench coat and the gray hat and walked over to the car. The man waited next to the car as Kaiba got in and tried to start the engine but the car made a rattling noise. "The hell?"

"You told me to go fetch you a shitty car so no one knows it's you when you head down there." the man said, defensively. "It made its way here just fine."

Kaiba turned the key to start the car again. No luck. "This piece of shit refuses to go anywhere tonight." Disappointed, Kaiba got out of the car and slammed the door. "Where's your car?" he demanded and watched as the man pointed to a silver Toyota. "Let me borrow it tonight."

The man nodded and reached into his pocket for his keys and handed it over to Kaiba.

Kaiba took it from the man's hand, got in the silver car and drove off to the club. After reaching his destination, he parked the car and approached the strip joint.

Being a Saturday night, the club was packed and a long line formed outside. He waited impatiently in the cold, mentally beating himself up for not arriving earlier. Then he became irritated at the thought of why he was going through all this. He reached the front of the line an hour later, "ID." he heard the bouncer say. Annoyed, he reached for his wallet and showed the man his ID.

"Seto Kaiba?" whispered the brawny bouncer after observing the ID and getting a better glance at Kaiba's face. Kaiba motioned the man to hush. Confused as to why Kaiba had decided to wait in line like the others, he lift the rope and let Kaiba through.

Kaiba walked in gazing at the club filled with beautiful women, he took a seat in the lounging area waiting for Serenity to appear. Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to find Amauto.

"One of my bouncer said you came in from the front entry dressed like-" he took a step back to get a better view of Kaiba's outfit, "a mafia."

"A what?"

"A mafia or a private detective were his exact words actually. Why?" he asked intrigued by Kaiba's behavior and fashion, "do you want me to play along?" his voice low so that others won't hear.

"Play what? I'm not playing any games tonight."

"Oh, come on. You're probably bored of being rich and decided to change it up today, I go through that sometimes too. Actually, no, I never get bored of being rich. I saw on my surveillance camera that you arrived in a cheap car. Speaking of cars, I bought a new Mercedes Benz the other day. Business is great."

Kaiba adjusted his hat to hide his face some more, "I'm here because I want to speak to Serenity in private."

"Blossom? You're here to harass her?"

"I'm just curious as to why she is here." he said, fighting the urge to punch Amauto in the face. How dare he thought that Kaiba was here to harass.

"Why are you wasting your money valued time to figure out why she's here? Have you gone mad?" he asked and Kaiba wished that he could answer that question as well. "Who cares why she's here. You're possessed!"

"Here's your glass of Remy Martin, sir." said a girl as she handed Amauto the glass.

He took it and thanked the girl as she went away.

"Just let me be for tonight." Kaiba requested.

"Fine. Do as you please." he took a sip from his glass. "What the fuck?" he said when he realized that Kaiba was right. The cognac did taste different. "This taste like shit! What the hell is this?" he bellowed and stormed off to the bar area to investigate, leaving Kaiba alone.

"Who's fucking me over?" he roared at the three bartenders. "Are one of you working for that damn club down the street? Trying to ruin my business?"

They all stared at him, eyes widened with fear.

"You, you, and you!" he screamed and pointed at each one of them,"In my office!"

They hurried away leaving the bar area empty and Kaiba wondered who was going to prepare the drinks for customers in the busy strip joint now.

"Would you like a lap dance, mister?" a dark hair girl asked, interrupting his thoughts. He shook his head still facing down so that she wouldn't recognize him. He dare not speak for fear of being contemplated. She shrugged off the rejection and moved on to the next gentleman.

After patiently waiting for a while, he saw Serenity walking out of the make up room. She was topless with a red panty, wearing very little make-up leaving her face looking natural and innocent. He watched as she gave one of her co-worker a hug, a blonde slender woman. Their bare breasts pressed against each other. He couldn't help but feel a bit excited at the image. "Good luck, Cherry!" he heard her say to the girl.

Serenity walked around the club, a man in the same lounging area as Kaiba stopped her by grabbing on to her wrist, "Hey, sweet cheeks." he said and pulled her down on his lap aggressively.

Kaiba eyed the man with rage and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He could tell that the man was making her feel awkward.

Serenity forced a smile on her face, "Hi."

"That is a nice little ass you got there." he said and gave it a smack.

She stood up, "You're not allowed to do that here." she scolded, "you can't touch us like that without our permit."

"Oh!" he said with a sheepish smile and pulled a hundred dollar bill out of his wallet, "would this change anything?" he asked, waving the money in Serenity's face.

"I'm not comfortable around you." she said and got up to leave, but the pervert snatched her and force her down on his lap again.

She looked around for help, but couldn't spot her boss anywhere. And where were securities when you needed them? She thought. All the other strippers were preoccupied and the customers were too busy enjoying themselves. She didn't notice Kaiba, who was seating in the dark corner of the area glaring at the whole scene with anger.

The pervert grabbed her ass and gave it another smack.

"Stop it!" she yelled.

In an instant, Serenity was on the floor and she noticed that the pervert was being held against his chair by a man and was being punched repeatedly.

/

"One of you are going to pay for what you have done!" screamed Amauto, his face red like a tomato. "Who is deluding the Remy Martin? WHO!?" he demanded, sitting in his desk glaring at his three employees.

The three bartender eyed each other in his office and shrugged.

"No one? Somebody's adding water to it, watering it down so that I look like a cheap idiot. Who?"

Still. No answer.

"If no one speaks up on a count to three, I will fire all of you! You will be replaced so fast, I swear to god!" He shouted and began counting. "One...two..."

"Boss!" shouted Candy, her skin still suffering from the bad spray on tan, "A fight broke out in the lounging area!" she said frantically.

"Drama in my strip club?!" he cried and slammed his desk with his fist causing a paper weight on the edge to fall off. "Unacceptable!"

He marched off to the lounging area and saw Kaiba pinning down one of his customer, assaulting him.

Kaiba kept punching, he pretended the pervert's face was Amauto's and punched again. His hat fell off, revealing his face to the crowd that had gathered around to watch the chaos. They gasped when they saw that it was the famous Seto Kaiba.

One of the gentleman had captured the whole incident on his little recording device.

Securities had to forced Kaiba off of the bruised face man and restrained him.

"Whoa! Kaiba must be related to Mike Tyson or something because DAMN that guy could punch!" he heard someone in the crowd shouted.

Kaiba looked around to find Serenity but she was no where in sight. He assumed that she must have ran away to safety, hiding in the make up room. He wasn't sure.

"MOVE!" Demanded Amauto as he forced his way through the crowd to reach Kaiba. "What the hell are you doing now?" he asked once he had reached him.

Kaiba ignored him and exited the club, leaving the hat behind. There was no point in hiding now, he thought. He walked to the silver car and hated that it had started to rain. He took off the trench coat and slammed it onto the wet dirty ground. "What the hell was I thinking?" he asked himself, letting the rain soak him up. He saw a girl storming out of the club and recognized it to be Serenity immediately. She was fully dressed and was staggering back to her car.

His gaze followed her and he noticed that she didn't get in her car. Instead, she leaned against it and let herself be drenched in the rain as well. She covered her face with her hands and began to cry.

A/N: Thank you for the reviews! You guys give me the motivation to write. I truly appreciate it! =)

YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME! Let me know what you think of this chapter, I read every single review and am very grateful for your input. xoxoxo


	5. Chapter 5

A POLE TO GRIND ON

Chapter 5

To approach or not to approach. That was the question that was floating around in Kaiba's head as he stared at the poor girl who was crying in the cold rain. A heavy sigh left his lips, his breath created a fog in the freezing air. He kept wiping away the rain drops that had fallen on his face, but gave up eventually. What was the point? It was pouring and hell he was already soaked.

There was no more time to waste as he decided to approach her. He walked towards her, avoiding puddles of water along the way. "Serenity," he said coolly once he had reached her. He saw her looking up at him, the raindrops were disguising her tears but her swollen eyes gave away the fact that she had been crying.

"What do you want?" she sneered, but silence was her only reply. Frustrated, she turned away from him and open the door to her car. A hand on her shoulder stopped her from entering. She spun around. "What do you want?" she asked again. She saw that he had a look of concern on his face and noted that he was entirely wet from the rain too.

"Why are you working here?"

"Why do you care?" she snapped. Serenity was sick and tired of him lingering around her. Pinched in long-suffering irritation, Serenity's exhale was audible. What was he looking for? Shouldn't he be at home in his big mansion plotting of ways to make more money? She thought. Then she wondered why he risk being spotted by protecting her from that pervert. Was he out looking for a charity case? Kaiba was either mentally possessed by an angel or simply had something diabolic up his sleeve. She wasn't sure. "Why did you help me back there?"

All these questions she threw at him, why couldn't she just be grateful? "That asshole deserved every punch I gave him. Frankly, I wasn't even done with him. I know you're not a slut, you're an innocent girl strangled in this corrupted business. I saw it in your eyes. Why?" Kaiba always had good judgment, he could easily tell between a naughty girl and a good girl. He was sure that this Wheeler fell under the good girl's list. He took a step closer to her and within a second he felt her head on his chest. Her little arms shyly wrapped around him.

At that moment, she didn't care who he was, she just needed someone to lean on because the night had consumed her, leaving her numb and dead inside. She just wanted to hear the comforting sound of a beating heart.

Kaiba stood there, allowing her to rest her head against his hard chest. He felt the warmness coming from her little fragile body. A collection of emotions ran through his mind. What he wanted was to find out if her skin was as soft as it appeared to be. Never thought he'd catch himself wanting to do that, but he held Serenity back and with the back of his hand, he gently stroke her cheeks. Indeed, her skin on her angelic face was extremely soft.

She stared at him, her heart hammering hard against her ribs. Was he actually stroking her cheeks with such gentleness?

Her soft cheeks, beautiful wet hair, and innocent looking eyes were enough to make him want to kiss her. Without hesitation, he leaned close to her and their lips met. He kissed her softly and slowly. He wasn't sure why he had let his guard down and kissed her. But her lips felt soft against his and he had no regrets of doing it.

Kissing this innocent beauty somewhat made him feel as if he had entered a different world. A kind and gentle world where life was never hard. An innocent world that his mother had tried to create for him as a child, but he knew never existed.

Serenity eyes widened as he kissed her, but she calmly let herself loose and began to close her eyes. If his goal was to make her forget about her dreadful night than he had succeeded. Now the angry thought of that pervert was gone and pleasure filled up her entire body. She wanted to touch him, to feel his muscles. Instead, she gripped onto her car handle from behind her, holding on to it tightly. As if she literally feared that his kiss might actually sweep her off her feet.

He tasted of black coffee. He probably drank a lot of it to keep himself up late at night to work, she thought. But, she didn't mind the taste at all. If anything, the taste awoken her body, making her want more.

Making her want him.

He never got an answer as to why she was working as a stripper and he may not get that answer tonight. Whatever the reasons were, he was sure that it would come out eventually. After all, the truth always had a way of coming out and that thought never failed him.

Distancing himself from her wasn't easy, but being a Kaiba, dealing with the uneasy was his specialty. After all, running a multi-billion dollar company was never easy. Choices had to be made, good ones that is. He took a step back from her ending the kiss, "You give in life once, it'll control you." He eyed the club with his cold blue eyes, "They will control you. That business will eat up your soul if it hadn't already. You don't have to sink to that level. Whatever it is that you desperately need, there are more than one way to go about it. Don't let life control you, you need to take control of your life."

Serenity knew Kaiba was a loner with a capital L. He went through life solo and she found that to be depressing. He was no doubt a strong-minded man tho, she was sure that there was no one out there who would be able to control him. The only person that she could think of who would be lucky enough to see the softer side of him would be his little brother, Mokuba.

"Control," he whispered softly but firmly, his cold stare trapping her in place, "is everything."

Not sure of what to say, Serenity only stared back. She didn't know the man well enough to trust him with her tragedy. She didn't even tell Joey about her brain tumor, so why must she tell him? All she knew was that he was a rich loner, possibly a workaholic, and he despised her brother. On the other side, Joey never had much kind things to say about Kaiba either. However, Kaiba stood up for her which brought nothing but confusion upon her..and his kiss...The kiss triggered something in her innocent virginal body, leaving her wanting something more. The route to which was tempting her beyond her most sensual imagination.

An earsplitting thunder sound broke out, interrupting her thoughts about the kiss between her and Kaiba. She blushed a little, but he was too concentrated on the rain to notice. "Go home, Wheeler." he said and reached around her to open up her car door.

She gave him a little glance before getting in her car, a slight smile fell upon her face. He shut her car door and quickly made his way to the silver car that he had borrowed.

Kaiba watched in the rear view mirror as Serenity drove away and waited till she was out of sight. He took extra precaution while driving in the rain, his mind beating him up with strange questions. Did she like my kiss? Did I make a mistake? Am I falling for her? Have I lost my mind? Are cupids messing with me? To hell with it! He screamed in his head, attempting to hush his mind up. Those questions were making him dizzy and he tried to brushed them away.

His attitude towards her changed, he went from not caring for her to wanting to beat up every man that laid their hands on her. He wanted to claim her and his protective instincts were telling him that she needed him. She needed his help, his power, his protection...maybe even his love.

/

"Seto Kaiba had been spotted at a gentlemen's club last night. The young CEO assaulted a man, leaving his face completely battered." announced a young blonde news anchor lady, "We have the footage right here. There is no denying it."

Mokuba watched on his living room floor as the footage of his older brother was played on national television, "So, that's the godforsaken place he was talking about." he said to himself.

They had blurred out all the strippers to keep their identity hidden. Unfortunately, Kaiba's face was exposed for the whole world to see.

"I don't believe it! Is this some sort of publicity stunt?" asked a male news anchor as soon as the footage ended, "Is this a desperate attempt to have people focus their attention on his company? After all, he is launching a new program next month."

"If anything this stunt is only going to sabotage his business." said the female anchor, "Here is the footage again if any of you have missed it."

Suddenly, the television turned off and Mokuba's head spun around to see that his brother was holding onto the remote control.

Kaiba was fighting the urge to throw it through the huge television screen. "At least the moron who filmed this whole scenario captured the good side of my face." he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"Seto! Our company is in ruins?" he cried.

"Don't be silly, Mokuba. Everyone knows damn well that my company holds the best technology for Duel Monsters. They can't resist but to buy from us. No other companies had stood a chance against Kaiba Corp. Soon the media will be filled with other bullshits like Lindsey Lohan from America and her hundredths DUIs." with that he slammed the remote on the table and walked away. Little did the world know that he was actually defending a poor girl from a pervert that night.

A/N: I want to thank all of my reviewers!

Darkmagiciangirl05

Aiyana-J. Snowbear

Kingdom's OathKeeper

Sakura Trees

Pandalovelatte

and some of the guess that left a review.

You guys truly do motivate me. I read all of your reviews and am very very grateful for them. I thank you so much for your time. I don't think I would make it all the way to chapter 5 if it weren't for your reviews. They really hype me up. =)

I hope to upload soon and I do hope that you guys enjoyed this chapters! More to come! xoxoxo


	6. Chapter 6

A POLE TO GRIND ON

A/N: Once again thanks for all the reviews guys!

Chapter 6

A ray of sunshine broke out through Serenity's window, she slowly blinked her eyes opened and sat up on her bed. A blush came across her face as she touched her lips, remembering the kiss that Kaiba and her had last night in the rain. The thought of it made her feel a little shy. She stood up and looked out her window. It was a beautiful cliché sunny day. She smiled a bit and began her morning routine. As she was in the bathroom brushing her long auburn hair, she heard a knock coming from her main door.

"Coming!" she yelled out from her bathroom, knowing that the person on the other side of the door would hear her.

"Ok!" she heard a voice yelling back and recognized it to be her brother. It was strange that he had decided to stop by on a Sunday morning, he normally only visits her on Saturdays. Baffled by her brother's visitation, she quickly came to the door to greet him, wondering what had led him to come see her today.

"Hey, Joey." she said as soon as she opened the door to invite him in. He seemed to be in a great mood she thought as she noticed the huge grin that spread across his face.

"Sis. Look!" he bellowed as he tried to show her a Youtube clip on his phone, but it was buffering. Frustrated, he walked all over her apartment, holding his phone up in the air trying to get more signal. "Oh. Here it goes." he said once it had begun to play.

Serenity walked over to her desk where her brother was standing, he lowered the phone to her so that she could get a better view. Her eyes widened in horror as she found the clip to be about the incident that had happened last night. She watched as it showed Kaiba punching her pervert and prayed that she was not caught in the clip. Thankfully, she was blurred out, but a sense of guilt emerged in her.

Joey kept laughing, "Jeez! Can you believe Kaiba was at a strip joint beating up a stranger? What was he fighting over, a stripper?" He watched with great entertainment. A part of him had felt empowered by it. Kaiba had finally humiliated himself in public and Joey thought that this day would never come. How amusing. He figured Kaiba deserved to have his valuable professional image sabotage. After all, the guy was always calling him a mutt and a moron. Karma's a bitch. "This clip has over a million views already and it was only posted this morning. It was even on the news!" he announced, pleasingly.

"Maybe he had a good reason for it." she said in defense for Kaiba.

Joey gave his sister a puzzling glanced and returned to staring at his cell-phone screen, "What's a good reason for punching someone like that?" His face still startled from her comment.

"Perhaps the guy being punched was acting like a pervert."

"A pervert at a strip club? That's no surprise. Besides, girls there probably like the attention those perverts give them."

"You don't know that!" she screamed at her brother angrily, but then covered her mouth when she realized that Joey doesn't have a clue of what she was going through. Surely he wasn't trying to be insensitive. He could tell her everything. Every suspicion he had and every worry. Serenity could too, but this was different. Joey had a lot on his plate. Especially since he was planning on starting college soon. If she told him, she would only be transferring the burden from her shoulder to his. It would be selfish.

Joey looked at Serenity, "Jeez, sis, calm down."

She swallowed hard, her mouth dry. "Joey, I'm so sorry." she whispered and backed away into a corner with her back against it.

"Are you ok?"

She stared at him innocently and forced a smile on her face, "Yeah. I'm fine."

He frowned as his cell-phone began to vibrate, he gestured his sister to wait a minute before answer, "Hello? For an eight hour shift? Sweet! I'll be there!" He hung up and smiled back at his sister, "My boss is giving me more hours at the restaurant. I told him how I needed more hours to save up for school and rent."

"That's great."

"I better get going." he said as he quickly made his way out. "Oh. Sis. You're sure you're ok?"

She gave Joey a quick nod to reassure him, "Yeah, I'm just a little stress out. That's all. I couldn't sleep last night. You know, finals and all..."

"Ah! Final seasons! I forgot. Sorry I woke you up, Serenity." He gave Serenity a warm hug. "Take care of yourself! Don't stress too much."

"I will." she promised as she waved goodbye to her brother.

/

It was the time of month to go shopping for new lingerie, she had been reusing the same three set of panties and bras. Before Serenity had decided to take a job as an exotic dancer, she owned nothing but mundane white cotton bras and underwears. She had never even worn a thong. Then her boss told her if she wanted to work here she was going to have to go shopping for something sexy. Her white innocent cotton bra and underwear were not going to get her far in the stripping industry. Especially since all the girls there were dressed in fancy sexy lingerie. She purchased her first three set of lingerie at Victoria Secret. They just opened one down at the Domino mall a few months ago.

Girls made a huge fuse about it, they all crowded outside for the grand-opening and swarmed in once the door opened.

Men went there with there wives or girlfriends and flinched at the prices, wondering how the hell a bra could cost around a hundred dollars and a thin thong that obviously doesn't need a lot of fabric to make could cost up to almost fifty. What a rip off, those men thought. They couldn't believe their ears when Victoria Secret announced that every year the company designed a bra that was worth around a million or two dollars. Ridiculous! Who the hell owns that shit? Lady Gaga? They wondered. Regardless of prices, women adored the gorgeous looking lingerie and so did their men.

Serenity parked her car, excited about a new collection of lingerie that had just launched. There was no time to waste as she hurried in the store, the new collection was a limited edition and she had to get her hands on them quickly before they sold out.

She wandered around the store, browsing through the intimate apparels and admiring some of the modeling pictures that hung on the pink wall. She stopped when a thong caught her eyes. She held up the red thong with white lace and rhinestones and examined it. It was certainly a beautiful one, she thought as she looked for the price tag. $34. Expensive, but surely was worth every penny. It would be an investment. Now she had to find a matching bra to go with the exquisite thong.

"Serenity?"

She spun around when she heard her name, a blush grew on her face when she saw that it was Mai Valentine. She saw Mai eyeing the thong in her hand and became more embarrassed.

"How cute! Can I see?" she asked reaching her hand out to grab it. Serenity handed the blonde the thong and she took some time to admire it. "I love it. You got great taste, hun." Then a grin came across her face, "Who are you going to wear this for?" she asked and gave Serenity a little nudge.

"Umm.." Serenity's face grew redder.

"Oh, come on! You can tell me. What am I going to do? Tell your brother that I saw you buying a thong? That would be awkward! I don't think he would want to hear it."

While she was glade that it was Mai that she bumped into and not her brother, the situation was still inconvenient. She knew she had to say something, otherwise Mai would refuse to leave her alone and she had to hurry home to get ready for another round of work tonight. Ah, work, something she was definitely not looking forward to. Particularly with what had happened. Now she had to think of another lie, despite that it was going to become a snowball effect. She was positive that she wasn't going to tell Mai about her stripping job. That's for sure.

"There's this guy in chemistry class.."

"Name?" she interrupted.

Serenity hesitated for a moment to make up a name, "John. I just have a little crush on him that's all. But, I just been wanting to look good for myself too."

"Oh, say no more." she giggled. "It's just..you're so innocent looking it's weird seeing you with a thong...a bold red one too. But I'll let you go do your little shopping. I'm all ready done here. I agreed to meet Tea at this restaurant down the street for some cocktails. Unless, you want to join us and chit chat about John.." she watched as Serenity shook her head, "No? Ok. Well, good luck with you and John." she said and gave her a wink.

Serenity sighed, relieved that Mai was finally gone. She resumed her shopping and went to the check out line with two new set of lingerie.

As soon as she parked her car in front of her apartment building, her cellphone rang letting her know that her boss was calling. She shuffled the pink Victoria's Secret bag and her purse in one arm to make it easier to answer the phone. "Hello?"

"Blossom?"

"Yes?"

"It's Amauto, I regret to inform you this, but I have to let you go."

Serenity dropped both her shopping bag and purse on the concrete ground, had she heard correctly? "You're firing me?"

"Yes."

"Why? Is it because I've been wearing the same three lingerie? I just bought new ones!" she said frantically.

"No."

"Is it because I didn't let that pervert touch me which was the reason why Kaiba punched him? Is that why you're firing me?"

"I can honestly say no to that." he answered.

"Then why? Because I refuse to get breast implants? What is it?"

"Look, you're a great gal and all, but I'm the boss and I don't have to give you a reason as to why you're fired. Just don't come in anymore."

"But, you don't understand! I am in a medical crisis! I need the money. Hello?" she looked at her cell-phone and was upset to see that he had hung up.

She stood frozen in dismayed on the side walk, her bags still on the ground next to her. "Fired from a stripping job, you gotta be kidding me." she muttered to herself.

Questions of how she was going to pay for rent and most importantly her surgery drowned her mind. She was so close to saving enough for the procedure too and only needed to work there another month. Just one more month or even less.

Serenity finally found some strength in her body to pick up her bags. She made her way up to her apartment, her face emotionless. She carried her body up the stairs like a zombie. She didn't even have the energy to cry. She leaned her head against her door for support while she fumbled in her bag for the keys. As she opened it, she noticed a note that had been stuck between the crack fell down. Curious, she walked into her apartment, closing the door behind her with her eyes still glued to the note that had landed on to her living room floor.

She picked it up, unfolded it, and read it.

The note read.

"We are hiring at Kaiba Corp. Stop by my office 8:00AM tomorrow sharp."

and it was signed, SETO KAIBA.


	7. Chapter 7

A POLE TO GRIND ON

CHAPTER 7

Kaiba sat on the edge of his bed in his master bedroom staring at himself in the mirror that hung on the wall in front of him. Screw what people thought at the moment. It would blow over in a couple of weeks and no one would be talking about his little punching rampage at the club. The thought of Serenity haunted his memories. Was that what she had to put up with everyday at work?

He winced at the thought of other men looking at her nude. A hint of jealousy possessed his being. He clenched his white bed sheets, forming a stiff fist. Then he thought of her gentle soft lips against his. That night, he couldn't prevent himself from kissing her. Not when the rain was soaking up her body, leaving her look irresistible and the moonlight shining on her lovely lips...beautiful.

Not when every fiber of his body were aching for her.

She tasted of something sweet, maybe it was the cherry lip gloss she wore. He loosen the grip he had on his bed sheet and laid back down on his bed. It was far too early for a drink to drown out the thought of her.

He had to see her again, but not in that damn club where men lust over her. He wouldn't be able to handle it. There had to be another way for him to see her, or better yet a way to get her to stop working there. Maybe at the moment his thoughts for her were a bit possessive, but he couldn't help himself. Not at the moment.

Perhaps he could confront her, tell her that he wasn't comfortable with her working there. But, hell he wasn't even her boyfriend. How would he be able to demand such a thing from her? As cold as he had been to the people around him, he was still a human being with a heart. And so the silence plan he plotted in his brain came to a conclusion. He would have her fire from her work, have her contract be terminated and offer her a job at his company...The thought was absurd, outrageous. But it would have to do for now, he doesn't want her there. The jealousy was taking control of him, he became impatient.

He wanted her...desired her. His protective instincts were kicking in, and they were coming in hard.

Kaiba arranged a meeting at the strip joint with Amauto the following afternoon.

Amauto had agreed to meet him, assuming that Kaiba wanted to discussed about his punching rampage at the club.

Kaiba arrived promptly, entering from the back straight into the empty VIP room. He waited there dressed in a sharp looking black suit and tie, ready to talk business.

"All these beautiful girls at my club, yet you chose to see me alone instead. I'm flattered." He teased as he walked in and took a seat across from Kaiba, "What's all this about? The media?"

"I can care less about the media." he said.

"Kaiba, you've been acting rather strange lately. So, what brings you here?" he asked, "and please don't punch my face." he added with laughter.

Kaiba rolled his eyes at the man's little joking plead. "I'm here to make you an offer you can't refuse."

"An offer I can't refuse? You showed up to my club one night, dressed like a mafia with your little fedora hat, punched one of my customer, and now you want to make me an offer I can't refuse. What is this? The Godfather now? And what if I do refuse? Are you going to kill one of my prized stripper and stick her head under my bed covers while I'm sleeping?"

That's one thing he hated about Amauto. The guy mocked him, asking stupid questions and somehow relating it to a movie he'd seen. Sure, Kaiba had set him up for that one, but the man's still annoying.

"I want you to fire Serenity."

"You mean Blossom?"

"Stop correcting me every time I say Serenity. Her name is Serenity and I want you to fire her."

"Why? What did she ever do to you? Did she reject you a blow-job or something? The girl has got bills to pay and this economy is shit. Did you not read Domino's Economy Journal? We got people with college degree fighting for a spot at McDonald. Where the hell is she going to find a job if I fire her?" He said as he lit his cigar.

"You let me handle that."

"Plus, I'm not going to fire her. My customers adores her. She brings a lot of customers in, she keeps my club busy and cash flowing in. I'd be insane if I fire her. Every men that walks in are always asking where she is or when will she be back. Besides, she's under a contract stating that she can't take an offer from any other company for six months. She has to stay here and work."

"Which is why I'm going to offer you 1.5 million dollar to terminate that contract. And don't you worry about her getting another job. I have it handled."

"You're going to give me 1.5 million dollar to fire her?" he looked at Kaiba puzzlingly, "So that you can offer her a job at your company..."

Kaiba nodded. Indeed, it did sounded odd when he heard it out loud.

"What kind of investment is this? Does she have some sort of hidden skill that would be of use to your company?" asked Amauto, "Why couldn't you just tip her 1.5 million dollars?" he asked. Kaiba didn't care for his smug tone.

"Don't get smart with me." he warned. The truth was Kaiba didn't want Serenity back in this place, he figured she deserve better. A perfect halo hung above her head, she was an angel to him. He had to take her away from this place. It was in his instinct.

"Fine. Write me the check and take her. Money guarantees everything for you, huh?" It really was an offer he couldn't refuse. He thought if Kaiba wanted to be foolish and waste his money then so be it. What's 1.5 million dollars to Kaiba anyway? It was probably just a drop in the bucket for him or change in his pockets. After all, the guy's a billionaire with a well ran dueling monster business.

Kaiba pulled out a check book from his suit jacket and began to write the check. He tore it out and handed it to Amauto, "Doesn't guarantee shit, but it makes things a whole lot easier sometimes."

/

Now it was Monday morning and Kaiba sat in his office waiting to see if Serenity would arrive. He had sent one of his employee to drop off the letter at Serenity's door. His back turned to the floor to ceiling window that hold an amazing view when looked out. He glanced at his wrist watch, five more minutes till eight. He tapped his desk impatiently. A tall blonde woman walked into his office, "Mr. Kaiba, Serenity Wheeler is here." she announced.

"Send her in." he demanded. She nodded and walked away, her heels leaving a loud clicking noise at every step. The sound echoed inside his enormous office.

Moments later, the beautiful auburn hair girl walked in. He gestured her to take a seat on one of the chair in his office. She obliged, but he noted that she was not smiling. Instead, she looked worried and suspicious. He felt that feeling tightening in his gut again, the feeling of anxiety. Intentionally, he concentrated on shaking it off. Looking into her eyes, he smiled to himself. Vibrations of excitement unfolded in him, his eyes fell on her breast then to her legs. She wore a nice white blouse and a cute black pencil skirt. A very nice outfit, much better than a lousy string she wore at the club, he thought.

She looked so heavenly and it was the first time he had really paid attention to her in the daylight.

He cleared his throat, trying to get back to a more professional state of mind, "I'm glad you came."

"Did you tell Amauto to fire me?"

Kaiba gave her a look of irritation than spun around in his chair to stare at the city's skyline view from his window. "I did." he said, his back facing her. He didn't want her to see the look of fear on his face. Fear that she might reject him.

"Why?" she demanded.

Why? He had showed a little tenderness and helped spare her from that corrupted business, but she had to demand an answer from him. Why did it matter to her? "You don't look too happy. Why? Were you happier there?"

"No. I wasn't happy there." she answered, her voice soft and gentle.

He stood up and walked over to the front of his desk and sat on it. He moved his name plate on the table aside and looked down at Serenity who was fumbling with her skirt nervously, "What's the problem?"

"How did you do it? Why do you want me here?"

He let out a heavy sigh, "Take it or leave it Wheeler." Kaiba never liked to be questioned, especially when he thought he was doing the person a favor and he rarely does favors.

"You can't always have things your way because you have money." she said harshly. Sadness threatened to take control of her. Part of her was afraid that he was up to no good. The things she been going through the past month had left her bitter. She had her guards up more oftenly, leaving her old view of the pure world behind..And what was up with men paying to have their ways with her?

It was easier for Kaiba to deal with finances than it was for him to deal with this woman. Yet for some reason he found her appealing. But then again, Kaiba was never good at dealing with woman's emotion. He thought their emotions were illogical sometimes and Kaiba is a very logical man, at least when it came to business. He had never been in a relationship before. Lately, the things he has been doing for her was illogical, he could have just ignored the situation, leaving it behind. It was hard for him to admit that he was falling for her. Why wouldn't he be? Her innocent looks were captivating and the vision of her bare breast that came across his mind was a tease. Maybe it was because all the woman he fooled around with were skanky looking women. With his busy schedule, he didn't have time for a relationship. He had sex here and there for pleasure. He had never felt this way before, the feeling of possible love. He had a weird way of showing her that he cared, but that was because he never bothered to show any sign of caring for a woman. She was the first.

"You say that I should never let anyone control me. But you're manipulating my surroundings, forcing me to be here. You're trying to control me."

"Control you?" he asked, feeling a bit amused by her choice of word, "Or do you mean help?"

"You sadden me. You must have paid him to fire me or something. It's a very immature thing to do. You know how humiliating it is to be fired from a stripping job? Of course you don't!" She spat and got up from the chair to leave. She thought he was different. What a silly thought. Rich men will always use their money to get what they want, why wouldn't they? Money made things easier. At that point, she didn't give a damn about the kiss they had. Even tho that was her first kiss and he had stole it from her. Which she never tried to fight off.

Kaiba ran after her, he grabbed her fragile arm. "Let go of me!" she cried as she attempted to yank her arm away from him. But he had a firm grip on it. "Tired of men with money. I really am." and she was, she spent a month seeing them waving their money around, getting what they want.

"No. Listen to me." he hissed and pulled her closer to him until their lips were just inches apart. "I paid 1.5 million dollars to that devil to save your soul from that sinful business. You were under a contract for godsake. Is that the life you want?" he whispered against her lips.

Her eyes widened and her legs began to feel shaky. That was certainly not the life she wanted. She had to lie to save her reputation, to keep herself from burdening her brother. Lying was not an easy thing to do for her. She was always an honest woman and being deceitful was tearing her up inside. She found men who uses money to manipulate their surroundings to be rather offensive. 1.5 million dollars he spent, was that to buy her? How disgusting. "I'm leaving."

"Where? Where are you going to go work at?" he asked.

"I don't know!"

He laughed, raising his hand in mock surrender. "Fine. Go back to whoring yourself. There's a corner just right around the street." Just like that he felt a hard slap across his face.

"How dare you! I am no whore. You don't know me!"

He gazed at her, for some reason he found her angry face to be sexy. He began to breathe heavily. The pain from his cheek only fed into his urges. Certainly, he didn't mean what he said to her. It was just a spare of the moment annoyance talking. He wished that he could take it back.

Serenity gasped. She was in shock that she had let anger take control of her. It was not like her to be violent. She approached Kaiba with apologetic eyes. "Kaiba." she began to apologize but she felt him grab her waist. He drew her close to him and crashed his lips against her. She let him kiss her. Just like the first kiss she had with him, she didn't fight it off. She let it consume her, filling her body up with pleasure. She let herself surrender to Kaiba's act of aggressiveness. Something in her body wouldn't let her battle it. The kiss felt so good . Her body didn't want to listen to her mind, it listened to her heart and something in her heart told her to let it happen. Let potential love happen.

"No, you're not..you're not.." he whispered in between each kisses. He picked her up and brought her over to his desk and set her down. He stared deeply into her eyes, "You're not a whore." he said as he tucked her hair behind her ears with one hand while his other hand held her.

She gazed back into his blue eyes."I'm sorry." she whispered.

"Let me help you." he said. "I can help you." he murmured

He had developed a soft spot for her. It was clear that the both of them were aching for each other at this point. However, this whole thing was new to Serenity, she couldn't help but blush. She attempted to look away but he moved her chin so that she would still look at him. He kissed her softly again, he took her silence as permission to proceed, letting his kisses fall onto her neck. His hand fell on her blouse and he began to unbutton it.

She grabbed his hand to stop him and he looked up at her. "I'm scared." she whispered. He planted a kiss on her forehead.

"It's ok." he said. He wanted to say, it's not like I've never seen it before, but that might earn him another slap on the face. He would respect her, regardless of her past. He would protect her only if she let him.

"I've never had...sex before." she said innocently.

Great, that only aroused him even more. An innocent virgin was right in front of him.

Suddenly, she grabbed a hold of her head dramatically with both hands. Kaiba took a step back to analyze her. "Serenity?" he asked. She looked pale and weak.

"The tumor..." she muttered.

"The what?"

She stood up, eyes shut tightly as if she was trying to fight off some kind of pain that was coming from her head. Her body collapse onto floor, the vision of Kaiba's face became a blur and the room went black.

A/N: Thank you for the review again! I'm so happy that you guys took the time to review. I made this chapter a little longer and I sure hope you guys enjoy it. I hope that I will be able to upload another chapter before or on christmas. But if I don't I want to wish you all a merry christmas! :)


	8. Chapter 8

A POLE TO GRIND ON

CHAPTER 8

"Serenity?" her eyes fluttered opened in response to the voice. Her vision was a blur, but She felt someone holding on to her hand gently. After awhile, she regained her full vision and found the room filled with unfamiliar faces. "Serenity." She turned to see the person holding her hand to be Joey. She recognized him, but all these other people. Who are they?

"Hun, you're awake!" a blonde with violent eyes screamed.

Who is she? And that girl with short hair and blue eyes, who's she? What about that kid? "Joey, who are these people?" she asked, grasping his hand tightly.

"Sis, what are you talking about? Mokuba, Mai, and Tea." he replied pointing to each one. "You don't remember them?"

She looked around her, it took her a while to finally registered that she was in the hospital.

"Tea, can you go get the doctor?" he asked, the short hair girl with the blue eyes nodded and quickly headed out to get the doctor.

Joey became baffled, unsure as to why his sister couldn't recognize her own friends. He had so many questions in his head, but if his sister was in this amnesia like state most of his questions would go on unanswered.

According to the doctor's record, Serenity was aware of her brain tumor for a little more than a month now, but she didn't tell him. He wondered why, a part of him felt betrayed. He was at work when he had received a phone call from the hospital. They informed Joey that the ambulance had picked her up from Kaiba Corp. What was she doing there? On top of that, her surgery had been paid for by Kaiba. Why? He supposed Kaiba had decided to pay for Serenity's surgery to make up for the time he was at the strip club. Now the media was all hyped up about him, on how he was so generous to help out a poor girl. Brilliant on his part, he thought, but it still didn't explain why Serenity was there.

The doctor finally came in, he had a smile on his face, "You're awake." he said calmly. "Do you mind giving us some space?" he asked, "the brother can stay."

They nodded and made their way out. All of them had a look of concern on their faces. They were struck with a great amount of curiosity.

"Do you remember me, Serenity? I'm Dr. Picard." The doctor asked.

Serenity shook her head.

"You came into my office about a month ago. What is the last thing you remember?"

"Are my eyes ok?" she asked.

"Yes, your eyes are fine, sweetheart. But, that's not why you're here. Tell me what's the last thing you remember."

She hesitated for a moment, trying to recall her memories, "I remember that my mom and I were at the doctors and they told me that I needed eye surgery otherwise I wouldn't be able to see anymore."

"How long ago did your sister have eye surgery?" He asked Joey.

"That was years ago, doc!"

"Interesting, seems a chunk of her memories went missing. It occurs sometimes after a dramatic brain surgery. No worries. She'll just need therapy. Most patient are able to regain their memories back from therapy. Others... not so much." he began scribbling something down on his notes. "She'll have to stay a couple of days to recover. Meanwhile, you'll have to help her. Sometimes showing her pictures of places she's been to can help."

Joey nodded his head. The doctor went out of the room to leave Joey alone with his sister.

"Serenity. I know this amnesia thing must be scary for you, but don't you worry because I'm here for you sis. I'll try to help you..lets see...hmm. Where to start." he put his hand on his chin to come up with ideas to help her. "You're a college student at Domino University."

"Really?" She seemed very happy to hear that.

Joey nodded and continued, "Yeah, you were majoring Chemistry there. You were working at this little clothing boutique, but you got laid off."

Her face turned a bit sad after hearing that. Joey noted his sister's sad face and immediately tried to ease it, "No worries. You got hired at this coffee shop near Domino University. You're renting this little studio apartment-"

"I have my own place?!"

"Yeah! You have your own place. It's really nice looking."

"What else?" she asked, eager to learn more about herself.

"Uh..ok... Mai told me not to tell you that she said this, but you have a crush on a guy name John in chemistry class."

A blush came across Serenity's face, "What's he like."

"I don't know, maybe you should ask her. That's all she told me."

How amusing to wake up to her supportive brother and find out that she had made it to her dream college and finally had her own place...and the guy name John, she wondered what he was like and what had drawn her to like him. The conversation went on. Joey shared everything that had happened in the past and recently. He even pulled up some pictures on his cell phone to enlighten her.

Her eyes wondered around the small hospital room, a dozen of roses on the night stand caught her eyes, "Those are beautiful!" she said with admiration, she noted a card that was on the vase. "Who's Seto Kaiba?" she asked.

"Oh, he rushed you to the hospital. I wish I knew why you were there. Maybe trying to get a loan from him or something? I'm not sure. But he has always been a bully to us. Don't mind the flowers, he probably got one of his secretary to get them. Probably all a publicity stunt to get on the public good side. Whatever. That kid that was in here, Mokuba, he's his younger brother. Mokuba is cool with us tho."

They sat and chatted for a while, time was going by fast and Joey was ecstatic that his sister was awake. He missed her so much. "Oh! Serenity. I hate to leave you so soon, but I'm gonna have to go to that coffee shop down near Domino University. I need to let your manager know that you are in the hospital." he abruptly stood up, "Don't worry Serenity. I'll be back real soon. I'll pick you up a book on my back."

/

It all made sense to Seto Kaiba now. He knew the moment he saw her at the strip club something was terribly off. The biggest reason was his gut. It had never steered him wrong before and indeed time tells all. His stomach did a nauseating roll and twisted when he remembered her falling on the ground. He had acted quick, immediately called for an ambulance, and he had to carry her down to the front of his building. The image was heroic to some of the witnesses and the action had caught the media's attention. However, heroic and publicity was never in his intention. His priority at the time was to get her to the hospital. Fast.

They had refused to let him in the operation room, only family members were allowed. That was when he had no choice but to advise the doctor to call for her brother.

He went home that day, annoyed. Driving around the freeway aimlessly in his sport car, trying to calm his nerves down. There wasn't much he could do, she was in good hands of a surgeon and the only thing to do was to wait. His patients were growing thin.

His nerves were put to rest when Mokuba had informed him that Serenity was stabilized and the operation went smoothly. Yes, he had Mokuba be his spy. Mokuba remained close friends with Joey and the rest of his group of friends. Although, he never understood why Mokuba enjoyed hanging out with them. Their hobbies were dull and their definition of fun was boring.

Kaiba had handpicked some fresh roses and had requested his little brother to drop them off at Serenity's recovery room. He had no intention of being in the same room as Joey and according to Mokuba, that mutt practically camped at the hospital. He never left his sister side except to use the bathroom. He eagerly waited for Serenity to awaken from her surgery. It had been almost three days now.

He got into his shower and let the lukewarm water fall on to his tense body. The steam fogging up the bathroom had created a relaxing atmosphere. He grabbed the bar soap and began to lather up his body. A rapid knock on the door startled him and he dropped the soap to the ground. He let out a curse and a look of irritation drowned his face. "What!" he screamed and his voice echoed in the marble bathroom.

"Serenity is awake!" his brother announced.

Great. Serenity has finally awaken and all his anxieties were at ease.

"But something is wrong."

But something is wrong? Like what? Suddenly he found himself in a pool of panic. His mind beating him up with worst case scenarios. He quickly rinse off his body and got out of the shower with a white towel wrapped around his waist. He opened the door eyeing his brother, "What's wrong?" he demanded, suddenly feeling even more drained and weary. His hair still drenched from the shower, leaving beads of water drop dripping down rapidly.

The small boy stared at his big brother eyes widened. He had noticed that his brother had been acting strange and detected a lot of tension going on since Serenity was in the hospital. His brother was unable to eat or sleep for the past three days and was extra grouchy.

"Well?"

"Seto...Serenity couldn't remember any of her friends. By the sound of it, her last memories were of her and her mother at the doctors a couple of years ago discussing about some eye problems. I was standing right there and she asked Joey who I was. She's seen me a couple of times hanging out with Joey and Yugi. She didn't even recognized Mai or Tea and they hung out a lot." Mokuba hated to be the barrier of bad news.

Amnesia? If the girl had amnesia then someone is going to have to remind her of her past events and since she had been lying to everyone about what she had been up to the last month then she would only get lies back in return. How would she be able to remember if no one told her the truth, the truth that could possibly trigger her to remember all.

Besides the people at the strip joint, he was the only one who knew about her secret. What if she never regained her full memories back? What if the stripping incident was deleted entirely from her head? What if what he had done for her and what they had felt for each other was permanently deleted?

What if a cat gave birth to a dog? His sarcastic subconscious screamed at him to cease the negative what ifs thoughts.

"Seto?"

"Mokuba, I need a moment." He pleaded and gestured his brother out of the room. He need to breathe. His emotionless tone gave nothing away. Kaiba was always good at hiding fears and panics, always looking hard and tough on the outside as if nothing made him care.

What the hell was he going to do now? Damn if he knew. He planned to pay a quick visit to the hospital regardless of Joey was there or not. What he needed right now, he counseled himself, was a glass of wine.

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed and I really do hope your christmas was great! I know mine was :) Take good care of yourselves! The new year is coming so have an EXCELLENT NEW YEARS!


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